Florida State football was a trainwreck to end the 2025 season, where they finished with a 5-7 record. The fan base was upset with head coach Mike Norvell for good reason, since his squads have had only two winning seasons in the past six years.
The Seminole faithful look at arch-rival Miami Hurricanes, who just competed for the College Football Playoff National Championship, and become envious of their ability to recruit the line of scrimmage on offense and defense.
Head coach Mario Cristobal might not be the best at managing the game properly, which could hinder his ability to win a championship. However, games are won at the line of scrimmage, and he recruits heavily in the trenches. This is ChopChat, and not HurricaneChat, so let's not allow our rivals to get too confident in themselves after not being relevant for over twenty years.
Florida State had a late February signing for an intriguing offensive lineman Donald Akhibi
Florida State grabbed three-star prospects Jakobe Green, Steven Moore, Michael Ionata, Luke Francis, Steven Pickard, and Nikau Hepi in the 2026 recruiting cycle. This is a situation where assistant coach Herb Hand is trying to see what sticks in the rotation.
The 2026 class is almost done, and it is sad to see that the February Signing Period is virtually non-existent with many of them signing in December. However, Florida State was able to grab three-star offensive tackle Donald Akhibi from Douglasville, Georgia, who is listed at 6'7" and 300 pounds.
AGTG, I been dreaming of this my whole life and the time is here #Tribe26 #GoNoles pic.twitter.com/EcPeyjBCzg
— Donald Akhibi (@DonaldAkhibi) February 4, 2026
This is a move that I can get behind for the Seminoles because they need depth and size at the position, especially at offensive tackle. The departure of Lucas Simmons, transferring to Wisconsin, was a bit unexpected, so bodies have to be acquired there.
Coach Hand did a tremendous job with the offensive line last year, but he added four transfers to start last year, and is expecting more transfers to start in 2026. With that said, the youngsters that he recruited have to develop so that he can get multiple years of continuity.